


Time to Worry

by miltonicsimile



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: :// fyi, Alternate Universe - Horror, Creepy, Deception, Established Relationship, Halloween, JiHan, Late at Night, M/M, Murder, Uncanny Valley, and like descriptions of like bodily gore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-16
Updated: 2019-10-16
Packaged: 2020-12-17 06:31:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21049874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miltonicsimile/pseuds/miltonicsimile
Summary: With a serial killer on the loose, Joshua finds himself paranoid walking home from work late at night. But he should really believe his boyfriend Jeonghan when he says not to worry.





	Time to Worry

**Author's Note:**

> i really haven't written anything in a while and basically forced myself to write this bc spooky season lol so enjoy ig 
> 
> also like, this is clearly fiction and clearly like written w the intention for smth semi spooky and semi halloweeny dont take anything seriously lol

Joshua needed to get home.

He pulled the shop’s door closed behind him, leaning into it, trying to make sure the latch caught. He’d been meaning to call someone about getting it fixed for a while now and cursed himself as he had to struggle with it in the dark alone.

Finally, Joshua managed to get to the door secured and then pulled out his key and locked it. He would call first thing tomorrow morning about getting it fixed.

This was not a time to be out alone at night. He didn’t even want to think what Jeonghan would say if he knew Joshua was standing in the dark street alone, trying to lock up the shop, vulnerable to every and anything that waited in the shadows.

His apartment was only three blocks away, and he always walked home, even late at night after closing the shop. He knew that with all the murders on the news that he shouldn’t be out after dark like the police were warning people, but Joshua really couldn’t justify calling a cab with it was just three blocks.

He could call Jeonghan. He knew his boyfriend’s shift at the hospital had ended hours earlier. But Joshua also knew that Jeonghan would be exhausted and probably had eaten and passed out already. It was best to let him rest, not make him worry, Joshua decided. His boyfriend was so impulsive he'd probably run to Joshua in minutes if he thought there was true danger. Jeonghan could be so reckless.

He looked around.

The street was empty and dark. There weren’t even any parked cars lining the sides, which was unusual, though he supposed not impossible. It just made him feel even more alone. At the far end, the front sign of the bakery he and Jeonghan regularly had breakfast at, flickered.

Joshua tried to ignore the thoughts racing through his mind, going over the details of the murders he’d heard on the news. Jeonghan had been watching it religiously, staying up to date with all the horrific breaking details.

Dismembered bodies. Teeth pulled out of skulls. Fingers cannibalized, leaving nothing but bones. Eyes gouged out and left hanging from the sockets. It was the goriest crime scenes the police in the city had ever seen, describing it as animalistic brutality.

Joshua didn’t think any animal could be so cruel.

His heart pounded loud in his ears and he quickened his step. It was only three blocks. He had nothing to worry about. When he got home Jeonghan would be there and they would laugh at Joshua’s paranoia while they brushed their teeth before climbing into bed. He had nothing to worry about.

He pulled up the collar of his jacket against the cold as he stepped over a puddle with brown leaves swimming in it. The temperatures had been dropping steadily lately, especially at night. All of the rain didn’t help either. It made everything seem cold and grey as the seasons changed. Even the leaves seemed muted somehow.

Nearing the end of the street, Joshua glanced into the bakery window beneath the flickering light. He froze mid-step, brows knitting together as he stepped closer, trying to look inside.

The bakery always had the most beautiful display of cakes and buns and tarts, colourful and delicious looking. Joshua peered into the window, trying to make sense of what he was seeing through the flickering light on the glass' reflection his stomach tied into a knot.

The display was all rotten. The cakes, tiered and covered in what should have been beautiful frosting flowers were covered in mould. Blue and grey and black mould covered it all like a bruise, and some had even collapsed onto itself, decomposing.

Joshua took a step back from the window.

He shouldn’t be wasting time. It was late, and only getting later. He needed to get home. He needed to be with Jeonghan.

Chest pounding, Joshua started back down the street, this time at a much faster pace. He didn’t want to run. That would just draw attention to himself if anyone were to see him. But the street was empty, and he couldn’t help but wonder if that is a blessing or a curse on a night as dark as tonight. Maybe if there were other people around, he wouldn’t be so spooked. But maybe being alone was the safer option.

The murders had been going on for weeks now and the news still reported the police had no leads on the case. Forensic psychologists had been brought in to give their opinions, along with a myriad of other experts.

The killer was believed to be male and probably in his twenties. Lived in the city. Didn’t get off sexually to the killing but found some other sort of pleasure. Some thought he may be a psychopath, attractive, charming, but also conniving. He could have a highly successful career, was well-liked, despite his lack of empathy.

Joshua didn’t know anything about killers, especially brutal ones like this one terrorizing the city. He just knew that he probably was testing fate by being out this late alone. It was foolish, he realized that now.

Leaves crunch beneath his step, and he jumped involuntarily. Everything was getting to him. He was going to start seeing monsters in every dark alleyway at this rate.

The next two blocks raced by in a blur while simultaneously seeming to take forever to walk. They were also deserted. He tried not to think about how just because he couldn’t see anyone, it didn't mean he was alone.

Joshua shook his head as he scanned his surroundings. He was alone because no one else is stupid enough to be out this late when there’s a brutal serial killer on the loose. At least, that's what he told himself.

Finally, his apartment building came into view. He took the front steps two at a time. He made it. He was safe. Nothing happened.

He swallowed hard.

His hands shook and he wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or the fear that had leeched its way into his bones. In his hurry, he fumbled with the entry pin.

_Access denied_.

“Shit,” he cursed, glancing behind him. The street was dark and empty. Nothing moved. He was alone. As far as he could tell.

Trying again, he managed to press in the pin correctly. Joshua let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding when he heard it unlock.

He swung open the door as quickly as he could and raced inside.

Still shaking and pulse racing, he took the elevator in silence. He needed to calm down. To think about something else. Anything else. _Jeonghan_. He was almost home to Jeonghan.

But even the thought of Jeonghan did little to comfort his fear raddled body. Too much had gone wrong tonight. Too much of everything _was _wrong. What if along with everything else, Joshua came home and didn't find Jeonghan as the man he knew? What if he wasn't the man he loves?

He decided to watch the floor numbers, trying to focus on anything but the adrenaline still coursing through his veins.

Joshua let out a heavy breath, counting softly. “One, two, three, four, five-”. He paused, throat closing as he watched the five about the door turn to a seven.

The hair on the back of his neck rose.

Impossible. How could it possibly just skip six? Something was wrong.

When the door opened to the seventh floor, to his floor, Joshua stepped out hurriedly. _Everything is off tonight_, he thought, shaking his head. But he’s almost home. Jeonghan would fix everything, would quell his fears and worries.

Anxious to be inside, he fumbled with his keys, trying to get the right one to unlock the door.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he grumbled under his breath, exhaustion suddenly hitting him in waves.

With a defeated sigh, Joshua finally got the right key in the lock.

Before he could turn and unlock it, the key turned itself.

He took a step back.

The door flew open.

“What took you so long, ‘Shua?”

Jeonghan stood in the doorway of their apartment wearing pyjama pants with cats on them. His dark hair was messily pushed back, still wet from a shower. He looked so normal, and his words were so impossibly typical _Jeonghan_ it made Joshua’s chest ache.

“I missed you,” he breathed in relief, throwing his arms around Jeonghan and pulling him close. He was so warm, and Joshua was so, so cold. “I love you, you know that right?”

Jeonghan chuckled into the embrace. “I do. I love you, too. Are you alright? Did you miss my handsome face?”

“Yes, of course, I missed your face. You're the best looking man in Seoul." He was used to feeding his boyfriend's ego. It was familiar. Routine. "I am fine now.” Joshua nodded, pulling away. He stepped inside and pushed the door closed behind him, locking it. He felt like he could finally breathe. “I just got spooked walking home. All the media has been lately on is those gruesome murders.”

Jeonghan nodded, leading him into their bedroom. He sat down on their bed, watching as Joshua took off his work clothes. “You shouldn’t worry, ‘Shua. The city is a big place and you’re just one person. You’re safe, I promise you.”

“But how can you promise that?”

“Just trust me on this, okay, love?” Jeonghan smiled at him softly.

Joshua wanted to believe him. He wanted to do nothing more than be able to think that he’d always be safe out in the city. But how could Jeonghan possibly promise such a thing? He knew it had good intentions, but it didn’t truly soothe his worries.

“Okay,” he sighed, stepping out of his black pants. He could do anything for Jeonghan, even this.

“Come to bed, ‘Shua,” Jeonghan smirked at him, dark eyes watching him hungrily as he unbuttoned his shirt. “I will make you feel all better.”

Joshua rolled his eyes. This was normal. This was good. He could always count on Jeonghan to set things right when everything else in the world seemed to be falling into chaos.

“Is that another promise?” He teased, picking up his dirty clothes, not bothering on putting on anything else if he knew Jeonghan would just pull it right off the second he climbed into bed.

“One I fully intend to keep.”

Joshua chuckled, heading into their bathroom with his clothes. He flicked on the light and saw that the mirror was still partly fogged over with steam from Jeonghan’s shower. He had been showering more and more at night lately. Which wasn’t necessarily odd, just different from the person he’d known for years who took a habitual morning shower.

As Joshua went to drop his dirty clothes into the laundry hamper, he paused. There looked to be blood on cuff of Jeonghan’s button-down.

He stared at the stain, still more red than brown. Fresh. Not even dried yet.

“Hannie? Did you get hurt today?” He called out, dropping his own clothes into the hamper.

It wasn’t unusual for Jeonghan to be dealing with blood at work, he was a surgical intern after all. Smart and arrogant and ever so charming, Jeonghan was quickly becoming one of the best doctors at the hospital. But everything he did, as far as Joshua understood, was always scrubbed-in for procedure covered in a gown and with masks. There was no way the blood could’ve come from his day at work, there was just too much policy and procedure. And even if it had, Jeonghan would have never worn home a shirt bloody with a patient’s blood, that was breaking all kinds of protocol.

“What?”

Joshua went back into the bedroom; his boyfriend was sprawled out on the bed lazily. Jeonghan had shed his shirt revealing his thin frame in the low lamplight. There was a bruise on his bicep that definitely hadn’t been there the night before.

“Did you get hurt?” He asked again, trying to keep his gaze focused on Jeonghan’s face. “There’s blood on your work shirt.”

“You worry too much, ‘Shua. I just cut my finger making supper earlier.” Jeonghan replied, rubbing his eyes. It _was_ getting late. “Now come to bed.”

“What did you have?”

“Steak. Still bloody, like always.”

“You’re so gross,” Joshua replied, climbing into bed and over Jeonghan. He leaned in close and kissed him once, something brief with a promise of more to come. He tasted like mint toothpaste.

Joshua wanted to be able to just enjoy this, to lose himself into Jeonghan, but his mind was still abuzz from earlier. The news had made him paranoid.

“Where’d you get that bruise from?”

Jeonghan began peppering kisses down Joshua’s neck. “I fell off the couch earlier in my sleep and landed on a remote. Hurt like a bitch, too. I noticed it too when I went to shower.”

It seemed plausible enough. But now that he thought about it, Jeonghan had had a lot more bruises lately. And always an excuse. Joshua knew his boyfriend was clumsy, but still. It seemed odd.

"You need to be more careful. I don’t want you getting hurt. You need to stay safe just as much as I do.”

Jeonghan pulled back to look at him.

He was so handsome, made up of smooth elegant lines in careful delicate proportions. But Jeonghan was also smart. He was ruthless when he wanted something and would fight for it till the end to meet his goals. It was this combination that had attracted Joshua to him the first place.

“I promise to stay safe as much as I promise that you are safe, alright?” Jeonghan said, dark eyes on him. “Please, don’t worry. I will tell you if I ever need you to, okay?”

“Okay,” Joshua said, trusting Jeonghan completely. He didn’t think anything could ever change that. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

A month and three more murders later, Joshua got a call while at work.

“’ Shua, it’s me,” Jeonghan said, voice uncharacteristically hoarse. It sounded like he was running, or scared. Which was impossible. Jeonghan hated exercising and wasn’t scared of anything.

But then, in the background, sirens appeared, the sound growing louder and louder.

“It’s time to worry.”

**Author's Note:**

> find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/wizardwonu)


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